Département ligérien au cœur des châteaux et des vignobles, la Carte de l’Indre-et-Loire aide à organiser un itinéraire le long de la Loire et de l’Indre, à relier Tours, Amboise, Chinon et Loches, et à combiner patrimoine, vélo et dégustations.
What you need to know about Indre-et-Loire
We present to you here the department 37 of France, which is the department named Indre-et-Loire. Its capital and prefecture is called Tours and its inhabitants number 610,079 people. It is one of the oldest departments in the country, which has a total of 83.
Indre-et-Loire was created in 1790 and currently occupies the former territory of the province of Touraine. The sub-prefectures of said department 37 are: Chinon and Loches. The department of Indre-et-Loire is administered by a president of the departmental council and by a prefect.
The Tourangeaux or Indroligériens live on an area of 6,127 km2 which means that the population density of department 37 is 100 inhabitants/km2. The department of Indre-et-Loire is divided into 3 Arrondissements, 5 Legislative constituencies, 19 cantons, 11 Intercommunalities, and 272 communes.
Which departments border the department of Indre-et-Loire?
Currently being a department integrated into the Centre-Val-de-Loire region, its neighboring departments are: the department of Indre which borders it to the southeast, the department of Cher, the department of Eure et Loir, the department of Maine-et-Loire, the department of Loir-et-Cher which borders it to the northeast, and finally, the department of Loiret.
| Element | Details |
|---|---|
| Region | Centre-Val de Loire |
| Prefecture | Tours |
| Sub-prefectures | Chinon, Loches |
| Population | ~610,000 inhabitants |
| Area | ~6,100 km² |
| Relief: hydro | Valleys of the Loire, Indre, Cher and Vienne, plains and vineyard slopes |
| Climate | Degraded oceanic: mild winters, temperate summers, pleasant interseasons |
| Economy | Tertiary in Tours, viticulture (Vouvray, Chinon, Bourgueil), heritage tourism and Loire by Bike |
| Key sites | Loire Castles, Tours, Amboise, Chinon, Loches, Azay-le-Rideau |
| Access | A10: A85, N10, TGV Atlantique to Paris and Bordeaux, regional TER hub |
What is the climate like in the department of Indre-et-Loire?
First of all, Indre-et-Loire has several climatic zones. We can therefore say that this department is one of those with the most climate varieties in the country.
In the Brandes: this area is the warmest zone of the department and therefore, in this zone, sunshine lasts a little longer. The only concern is that we fear drought during the summer. Precipitation is still normal and amounts to about 700 mm per year. However, the annual temperature hovers around 10°C.
In La Champeigne, the climate is rather classified as a mild and degraded oceanic climate. In other words, there are constant precipitations throughout the year. And overall, frost is quite common. The rainfall averages from 650 to 700 mm per year and frost lasts 55 days.
This area benefits from a mild climate of the degraded oceanic type. Moreover, precipitation is well distributed throughout the year. Frosts occur on average 55 days and happen between October and April. The average temperature throughout the year is about 11.0°C.
In the Baugeois-Touraine Borders, it is a low rainfall zone. The climate is therefore oceanic with low precipitation and less frost. The average annual rainfall is 625 mm and sometimes in this area, there are spring droughts and a lot of winds. Especially during winter, these are called winter storms. And with this season, there is also frost which occurs between April and October with an average temperature of 11°C.
What are the best cities in the Indre-et-Loire department?
We have ranked these cities based on the frequency of tourist visits that take place there. So, here are the most visited cities in the Indre-et-Loire department:
- Tours
- Amboise
- Joué-lès-Tours
- Chinon
- La Riche
- Saint-Avertin
- Saint-Cyr-sur-Loire
- Ballan-Miré
- Saint-Pierre-des-Corps
- Yzeures-sur-Creuse
- Genillé
What are the largest municipalities in the Indre-et-Loire department?
For this ranking, we chose the 10 largest municipalities in the Indre-et-Loire department
- Loché-sur-Indrois
- Bossay-sur-Claise
- Genillé
- Langeais
- Charnizay
- Orbigny
- Nouans-les-Fontaines
- Saint-Épain
- Yzeures-sur-Creuse
- Saint-Branchs
For this ranking, we chose the municipalities with the highest population densities. So, here are the 10 most populated municipalities in the Indre-et-Loire department
- Tours
- Saint-Cyr-sur-Loire
- Saint-Avertin
- Chambray-lès-Tours
- Fondettes
- Joué-lès-Tours
- Saint-Pierre-des-Corps
- Amboise
- Montlouis-sur-Loire
- La Riche
For your local landmarks and visit planning, start with the map of Indre-et-Loire. If you extend your stay towards the east and the Sologne forests, rely on the Loir-et-Cher map. To the southwest, the Vienne map facilitates connections to Poitiers and the Vienne valley.
FAQ: Map of Indre-et-Loire
The Map of Indre-et-Loire allows grouping Azay-le-Rideau, Chinon, Amboise, and Loches into loops, optimizing distances and visit times.
A Map of Indre-et-Loire with cycling routes and footbridges locates stages, stops, and TER connections for flexible itineraries.
Yes, it locates Vouvray, Chinon, and Bourgueil, useful for linking cellars, hillsides, and villages without detours.
